Koya University

Faculty of Engineering
Petroleum Engineering Department
High-Diploma
2023 – 2024
Fall Semester

Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR)

Module Name: Reservoir Simulation

Module Code: KOUD2606

By:
Shawbo Haydar

Supervised by:
Dr. Haval Hawez

21 January 2024
Contents

Summary: ...................................................................................................................................................... 2

Introduction:.................................................................................................................................................. 2

Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR): .................................................................................................................... 3

Improved Oil Recovery (IOR): ..................................................................................................................... 3

Hydrocarbon recovery: ................................................................................................................................. 3

1. Primary recovery:.............................................................................................................................. 3
2. Secondary recovery:.......................................................................................................................... 4
3. Tertiary recovery:.............................................................................................................................. 4
Factors affecting enhanced oil recovery: ...................................................................................................... 6

1. Mobility ratio: ................................................................................................................................... 6

2. Capillary pressure: ............................................................................................................................ 7
3. Wettability: ....................................................................................................................................... 8
4. Heterogeneity: ................................................................................................................................... 9
EOR Mechanisms: ........................................................................................................................................ 9

1. Microscopic efficiency:..................................................................................................................... 9
2. Macroscopic or volumetric displacement efficiency: ..................................................................... 10
Conclusion: ................................................................................................................................................. 12

References:.................................................................................................................................................. 14

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Summary:

This report on Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) explains primary, secondary, and tertiary

recovery methods, emphasizing EOR's role in maximizing hydrocarbon extraction efficiency. Key

points include natural flow and artificial lift in primary recovery, water flooding and gas flood in

secondary recovery, and techniques like gas injection, thermal injection, and chemical injection in

EOR. Improved Oil Recovery (IOR) processes are also discussed, focusing on production

enhancement, infill drilling, secondary recovery, and enhanced oil recovery techniques. The report

highlights the importance of mobility control through methods like polymer flooding, surfactant

flooding, and foam flooding to enhance sweep efficiency and increase oil recovery rates during

EOR processes.

Introduction:

In this report I focused on Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) processes, detailing the methods and

techniques used to recover more oil from reservoirs beyond what is achievable through primary

recovery methods. EOR involves various processes such as gas injection, thermal injection, and

chemical injection to enhance oil recovery efficiency. This report outlines primary, secondary, and

tertiary recovery methods, emphasizing the importance of artificial lift systems and additional

energy sources to maintain production rates as reservoir pressure declines. It also explores into the

concept of Improved Oil Recovery (IOR) and the processes involved in optimizing oil production

throughout the life of a reservoir. Furthermore, the report discusses the significance of factors like

wettability, capillary forces, and mobility control in influencing oil recovery efficiency at both

microscopic and macroscopic scales.

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Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR): any method used to recover more oil from the reservoir than

would be produced by primary recovery. (Kharrat Spring 2014)

Improved Oil Recovery (IOR): refers to any process which enhances the production or

recovers more oil from a reservoir during the life of the reservoir. (Kharrat Spring 2014)

IOR has the following processes:

A. Production enhanced

B. Infill/Step-out drilling

C. Secondary recovery

D. Enhanced oil recovery

Hydrocarbon recovery:

Hydrocarbon recovery occurs through two main processes

1. Primary recovery: This method involves extracting oil using either the natural energy in the

reservoir or pumps in a single well.

1.1. Natural flow: When a well has enough pressure, oil can flow out without needing a pump.

Initially, most wells have high pressure for this. The oil is pushed up to a storage tank

without external energy due to various reasons such as the following driving

mechanisms... (Romero-Zerón 2012)

A. Rock and liquid expansion drive

B. Water drive

C. Depletion drive

D. Gas cap drive

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 E. Gravity drainage drive

F. Combination drive

1.2. Artificial lift: There are two main types of artificial lift systems used for mechanical lifting

of wellbore fluids to the surface are pumping systems and gas lift systems.

A. Gas lift

i. Intermittent gas lift

ii. Continuous gas lift

B. Pump uses

i. Sucker-rod (beam) pumping

ii. Electrical Submersible Pumping (ESP)

iii. Reciprocating and jet hydraulic pumping system

iv. Plunger lift

v. Progressive Cavity Pumps (PCP)

2. Secondary recovery: when the natural reservoir energy (pressure) has been depleted and

production rates decline, it is necessary to provide additional energy to the reservoir fluid to

assist it to flow to the surface, this is done by: (Romero-Zerón 2012)

2.1. Water flooding

2.2. Immiscible gas flood

3. Tertiary recovery: During tertiary oil recovery, methods are employed to recover oil beyond

what is achievable through primary and secondary recovery stages. This involves injecting

specialized fluids, such as: (Romero-Zerón 2012)

A. Gas injection: Involves miscible flooding with solvents like carbon dioxide to

reduce interfacial tension and improve oil displacement efficiency. Gas solvents

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 like CO2, hydrocarbon gas, and nitrogen are used, with efforts to enhance sweep

efficiency. (Alutbi August 2020)

B. Thermal injection: Utilizes heat to reduce oil viscosity and increase mobility.

Techniques like steam flooding or in situ combustion are employed, focusing on

reducing oil viscosity to enhance recovery. (Alutbi August 2020)

C. Chemical injection: Involves adding chemicals to injected water to enhance oil

recovery by altering water viscosity, relative permeability, and interfacial tension.

Chemical floods aim to improve sweep efficiency and recovery, but challenges like

chemical adsorption onto reservoir rocks exist. (Alutbi August 2020)

Fig. 1A - Phases of EOR projects' implementation. From Gharbi et al. 2012. (Alutbi August

2020)

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 Fig. 1B - Flooding setup using plate model (Dai, You et al. 2023)

Factors affecting enhanced oil recovery:

1. Mobility ratio: the Mobility-control process involves managing the flow of injected fluids

in the reservoir to improve volumetric sweep efficiency and increase oil recovery. Mobility

control is achieved through various methods such as (Polymer Flooding, Surfactant

Flooding, and Foam Flooding). (Green and Willhite 1998)

𝑀𝑜𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑦𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝜆𝑤 𝐾𝑟𝑤 /𝜇𝑤 𝐾𝑟𝑤 𝜇𝑜

𝑀 = = = =
𝑀𝑜𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑦𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝜆𝑜 𝐾𝑟𝑜 /𝜇𝑜 𝐾𝑟𝑜 𝜇𝑤

 At favorable mobility ratios, i.e., M < 1, the fluid injectivity declines as the areal

sweep efficiency increases. (Alutbi August 2020)

 At unfavorable mobility ratios, i.e., M > 1, the fluid injectivity increases with

increasing areal sweep efficiency. (Alutbi August 2020)

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Fig. 2 - (a) Water flooding with unfavorable mobility ratio (M> 1), (b) Polymer augmented water
flooding with favorable mobility ratio (M ≤ 1) (Sydansk & Romero-Zerón, 2011).

2. Capillary pressure: refers to the pressure difference between two immiscible fluids in

contact with a porous medium.

Pc = 𝑃𝑛𝑤 − 𝑃𝑤

Pc = capillary pressure

Pnw = pressure in non-wetting face (oil-wet)

Pw = pressure in wetting face (water-wet)

2 𝜎 𝐶𝑜𝑠 𝜃
Pc =
𝑟

Pc = capillary pressure

𝜎 = interfacial tension

r = pore radius

θ = contact angle

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 As its clear from the equation, if interfacial tension reduces, capillary pressure will reduce

with it, but this reduce in capillary pressure will cause a rise in capillary number, leading

to an increase in microscopic efficiency.

𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝜈 𝜇𝑤
Nc = =
𝑐𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝜎𝑜𝑤

3. Wettability: this is a crucial factor in oil recovery processes, influencing the movement of

oil and water in reservoir rocks. Figure 3 illustrates the impact of wettability on water and

oil-relative permeability’s. In a water-wet system, the oil relative permeability is higher

than in an oil-wet system, while the water relative permeability behaves oppositely. This

means that a water-wet system is more favorable for oil recovery compared to an oil-wet

system due to the enhanced oil relative permeability in water-wet conditions. This

difference in relative permeabilities based on wettability conditions highlights the

importance of wettability in determining the efficiency of oil recovery processes.

Fig. 3 - Typical oil/water relative permeability curves (Teklu et al., 2013)

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 4. Heterogeneity: Heterogeneity in the context of petroleum reservoirs refers to the variation

in rock properties within a reservoir or formation.

The most important two types of heterogeneity affecting sweep efficiencies, EA and

EV, are the reservoir vertical heterogeneity and areal heterogeneity. When the reservoir

has a poor heterogeneity or it is more homogeneous, the volumetric sweep efficiency will

be nearly neglected or unaffected and RF will be equal to ED. The volumetric sweep

efficiency can also be affected with the mobility, so we can understand that any poor

parameters can be affected to the calculations of RF. (Sheng 2019)

EOR Mechanisms:

1. Microscopic efficiency: Microscopic displacement of fluids in a reservoir involves the

movement of fluids at a tiny scale within the porous rock structure of the reservoir. This process

is crucial in understanding how oil or gas is displaced and recovered from subsurface

formations. It encompasses phenomena such as: (Green and Willhite 1998)

 Capillary forces

 Wettability

 Pore-scale interactions that influence the flow and distribution of fluids in the reservoir.

Also, different factors like rock properties, fluid properties, and reservoir conditions impact the

microscopic displacement process. Furthermore interfacial tension, relative permeability, and

fluid-rock interactions affect the movement of fluids within the reservoir matrix. Additionally,

advanced techniques and technologies used to enhance fluid displacement efficiency, such as

surfactant flooding, polymer flooding, or other enhanced oil recovery methods. (Green and

Willhite 1998)

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 2. Macroscopic or volumetric displacement efficiency: The Macroscopic displacement of

fluids in a reservoir refers to the movement of fluids on a large scale within the reservoir.

And refers to the effectiveness of the displacing fluid(s) in contacting the reservoir in a

volumetric sense, it indicates the effectiveness of the displacing fluid in sweeping out the

volume of a reservoir, both areally and vertically.

Water flooding is a common method where water is injected into the reservoir to push oil

towards production wells. Gas injection involves injecting gases like carbon dioxide or nitrogen

to displace oil by reducing its viscosity or swelling it. Chemical flooding utilizes surfactants or

polymers to alter the properties of the fluids and improve displacement efficiency. (Green and

Willhite 1998)

Understanding macroscopic displacement is crucial in optimizing oil recovery from reservoirs

by enhancing fluid flow and displacement mechanisms. It plays a significant role in the field of

reservoir engineering and is essential for maximizing the extraction of hydrocarbons from

subsurface formations. (Green and Willhite 1998)

 Areal Sweep Efficiency (As)

 Vertical Sweep efficiency (Vs)

Recovery Efficiency (RE) = 𝐷𝑒 ∗ 𝐴𝑠 ∗ 𝑉𝑠

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Fig. 4 - Schematics of microscopic and macroscopic sweep efficiencies (Shrimali 2015)

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Conclusion:

1- What are the main processes involved in Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) beyond primary

recovery methods?

Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) involves processes like gas injection, thermal injection, and

chemical injection to maximize oil recovery efficiency beyond what is achievable through primary

methods.

2- How does Improved Oil Recovery (IOR) differ from EOR, and what are the key processes under

IOR?

Improved Oil Recovery (IOR) enhances oil production during the life of a reservoir and

includes processes like production enhancement, infill drilling, secondary recovery, and various

EOR techniques.

3- What factors influence enhanced oil recovery efficiency, and how do they impact the recovery

process?

Factors like mobility ratio, capillary pressure, wettability, and heterogeneity play crucial

roles in influencing oil recovery efficiency by affecting sweep efficiency and oil displacement

mechanisms during EOR processes.

4- What are the key mechanisms involved in EOR at microscopic and macroscopic scales, and

how do they contribute to enhanced oil recovery?

At a microscopic scale, EOR mechanisms involve phenomena like capillary forces,

wettability, and pore-scale interactions that influence fluid movement within the reservoir. On a

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macroscopic scale, displacement efficiency is crucial for optimizing oil recovery by enhancing

fluid flow and displacement mechanisms.

5- How do different injection methods like gas injection, thermal injection, and chemical injection

contribute to Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), and what are their specific roles in improving oil

recovery rates?

Gas injection reduces interfacial tension, thermal injection reduces oil viscosity, and

chemical injection changes water properties to enhance oil recovery efficiency. These methods

aim to improve sweep efficiency and recovery rates by optimizing fluid displacement within the

reservoir during EOR processes.

6- How macroscopic efficiency is controlled in EOR?

To control macroscopic efficiency in Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), several factors come

into play, such as:

Mobility Ratio: The mobility ratio between the injected fluid and the reservoir fluid affects

the displacement efficiency at a macroscopic level.

Viscous Fingering: Viscous fingering occurs when there is a difference in viscosity

between the injected fluid and the reservoir fluid, leading to the formation of fingers that

reduce sweep efficiency.

Reservoir Heterogeneity: Variations in reservoir properties like permeability can affect

macroscopic displacement efficiency during EOR processes.

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References:

Alutbi, M. (August 2020). "ENHANCED OIL RECOVERY EOR Final Report Done by." University of
Thi-Qar: 14.

Dai, C., et al. (2023). Principles of Enhanced Oil Recovery, Springer Nature.

Green, D. W. and G. P. Willhite (1998). "Enhanced oil recovery." (No Title).

Kharrat, D. R. (Spring 2014). Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR). M. Leoben. Professor of Petroleum
University of Technology: 204.

Romero-Zerón, L. (2012). Introduction to enhanced oil recovery (EOR) processes and bioremediation of
oil-contaminated sites, BoD–Books on Demand.

Sheng, J. J. (2019). Enhanced oil recovery in shale and tight reservoirs, Gulf Professional Publishing.

Shrimali, H. V. (2015). Developments in Enhanced Oil Recovery Technologies- A Review.

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